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Landmark Overtime Pay Class Action Lawsuit Against IBM By Tech Workers ExpandsSAN FRANCISCO --(Business Wire)-- March 14, 2006 -- Counsel for plaintiffs in the nationwide overtime pay class action lawsuit against International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) announced today that the suit has now expanded to include claims under Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New Jersey state law. The suit already included claims for overtime compensation under federal law for all workers in the United States as well as California and New York state law claims. The growing group of named plaintiffs, seeking to represent tens of thousands of other current and former technical support workers, charges the computer giant with failure to properly pay overtime wages. Claims under other states' laws may be added in the future. IBM employs more than 300,000 workers; the proposed class includes tens of thousand of systems administrators, network technicians and other technical staff throughout the United States. "This case could result in one of the largest class action lawsuits in history, both in numbers of employees and total damages, ever filed against a corporation for failure to pay overtime wages," said James Finberg, an attorney with Lieff, Cabraser, Heimann & Bernstein, one of eight law firms representing the plaintiffs. The amended class action complaint alleges violations of federal law on behalf of a nationwide class of IBM high tech workers as well as violations of the labor laws of California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota, New Jersey and New York on behalf of classes of IBM workers in each respective state. "Workers from anywhere in the United States are eligible to participate in the case as well," explained Todd Jackson of Lewis, Feinberg, Renaker & Jackson, P.C. The lawsuit charges that IBM deprives its employees who install, maintain, and support computer software and hardware by unlawfully characterizing them as "exempt" from state and federal labor law protections. The proposed classes consist of current and former IBM technical support workers with the primary duties of installing and/or maintaining computer software and hardware for IBM who were wrongly classified by the company as exempt from the overtime provisions of federal law and/or applicable state wage and hour laws. The complaint in Rosenburg, et al. v. IBM, was originally filed in U.S. District Court in San Francisco on January 24, 2006, and amended on March 13, 2006, by attorneys from Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP (San Francisco); Lewis Feinberg Renaker & Jackson, P.C. (Oakland), Rudy, Exelrod & Zieff, LLP (San Francisco); Outten & Golden LLP (New York); Spiro, Moss, Barness, Harrison & Barge, LLP (Los Angeles); Lee & Braziel, LLP (Dallas); Bruckner Burch, PLLC (Houston); and Goldstein, Demchak, Baller, Borgen & Dardarian (Oakland). Further Information Members of the media can obtain a copy of the amended complaint by contacting Amy Yu of Lieff Cabraser by e-mail to [email protected]. Current and former IBM systems administrators and technical staff who wish to learn more about the lawsuit or to join the lawsuit should visit www.overtimepaylawsuitagainstIBM.com or call 1-866-397-1008 to contact plaintiffs' attorneys. |
